The Dodgers and Yankees swapped left-handed relievers on Monday. New York acquired Caleb Ferguson for Matt Gage and minor league right-hander Christian Zazueta.
Ferguson, 27, joins a new organization for the first time in his career. He was drafted by the Dodgers in 2014 and has been with them ever since. He made his debut in 2018, starting his first three major league outings before being moved to a relief role. Apart from some occasional starts as an opener, he’s stayed in the bullpen ever since.
The results have been quite strong, with Ferguson making 96 appearances from 2018 to 2020, tossing 112 1/3 innings while allowing 3.93 earned runs per nine. He struck out 29.1% of batters faced in that time, gave out walks at an 8.7% clip and kept 44% of batted balls on the ground. Unfortunately, he required Tommy John surgery in September of 2020, wiping out the remainder of that campaign and preventing him from pitching at all in 2021.
He has since returned to the mound and has produced fairly similar statistics to before his injury layoff. In 126 appearances over 2022 and 2023, he has 113 2/3 innings pitched with a 2.85 ERA. He struck out 27.5% of opponents in that time, walking 8.8% of them and getting grounders at a 48% clip. Those results have come with Ferguson moving to higher leverage appearances, as he earned seven holds in 2022 and 17 last year.
He is now in his final season of club control, slated for free agency after the upcoming season in which he’ll make a salary of $2.4MM. This is the second left-handed reliever that has gone from the Dodgers to the Yankees this offseason, with Victor González having been dealt to the Bronx in December.
The Yankees have used Wandy Peralta as their primary lefty out of the bullpen in recent years, but he became a free agent this offseason and signed with the Padres last week. They now have Ferguson and González as their top southpaw relievers, alongside righties Clay Holmes, Jonathan Loáisiga and Tommy Kahnle.
Gage, 31 next week, will give the Dodgers another lefty to replace Ferguson, but one with a more limited track record. Gage has made 16 big league appearances over the past two years, suiting up for the Astros and Blue Jays, with a 1.83 ERA in a tiny sample of 19 2/3 innings. He spent most of last year’s with Houston’s Triple-A club, tossing 37 1/3 innings at that level with a 4.58 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate, 12% walk rate and 41.5% ground ball rate. New York claimed him off waivers from the Astros last week.
For now, it appears the trade will be 40-man neutral. By sending Gage to the Dodgers, the Yanks opened up a 40-man spot for Ferguson. The Dodgers are also reportedly signing Ryan Brasier, so they will still need to open a spot for him but could perhaps do so by designating Gage or some other player for assignment.
For the Yanks, they upgrade their bullpen for the 2024 season while giving up a bit of future value in Zazueta, a 19-year-old who posted a 3.29 ERA in the DSL last year. The Dodgers, meanwhile, were going to be facing a roster squeeze with the Brasier signing and have used one year of Ferguson’s services to give them an extra prospect and some more roster flexibility. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them pursue a different lefty at this point, as they are now down to Alex Vesia, Ryan Yarbrough and Gage as their southpaw relievers.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the Yankees were acquiring Ferguson. The Post’s Joel Sherman reported the Dodgers were acquiring two players, one in the upper minors and one nowhere near the majors. Heyman reported Gage’s inclusion.
At least Cashman is bolstering the bullpen.
A good bullpen is almost more important than a great rotation. The Yankees have a true ace, and a few solid arms in the rotation.
Do I want more? Are there question marks? Yes. But dips like you need to relax your sphincters. They’re still a top contender, and at least on paper look a lot stronger than last season already, with several major players still available.
They tried to upgrade the rotation with Yamamoto. He chose LA. Stroman is an upgrade to Severino, who produced negative WAR. This is a team with Juan Soto and Aaron Judge in the line-up together. We shouldn’t have to win too many 1-0 games. At the end of the game, when you need six outs, it won’t matter that the score is 10-8 instead of 3-1. I wish we had a stronger rotation as well, but not at the expense of doing desperate things like overpaying for Snell.
Can you imagine if Stanton wakes up and joins the party?
99CJ
Is Judge an upgrade over Hicks? Us that unknowable? Or can we make a reasonable guess?
If you don’t think Stroman is an upgrade over the abysmal performance we saw from Sevy last year, then perhaps it’s you who isn’t the real fan. Try watching some games.
dob
“If you don’t think Stroman is an upgrade over the abysmal performance we saw from Sevy last year”
Exactly the wrong way to look at it
It’s what each player is expected to do this year that matters
Do you not expect more from Stroman than Sevy this year?
JB
“Do you not expect more from Stroman than Sevy this year?”
Don’t know who you are talking to, but I’ll put in my two cents
Yes, I’d expect more from Stroman than Severino on average
If both pitch to their peaks, Severino is likely better
@99 Motivation has never been an issue for Sevy nor can it prevent injuries for him. I hope Sevy rebounds well for the Mets but I’ll take Stroman and his 25 starts over Sevy at this point.
What’s Steve Sax syndrome called for a pitcher? Sevy had a case of whatever that is. His stuff is too good to be that bad again.
Who would take on that contract?
The yips by any other name is still the yips.
Fact.
Severino 2023 WAR -.6. Stroman 2023 WAR 2.7. That is what is called an upgrade.
Clearly the Yankees like Stroman better than Sevy at this point, or they would have signed Sevy.
That was for you, but I should’ve addressed it that way.
It was basically a follow-up on your remarks “It’s what each player is expected to do this year that matters”.
Since you would expect more from Stroman this year, then Dob’s response is correct. While Sevy could theoretically be better in 2024, but based on what we saw in 2023, most people probably expect Stroman to be better.
It’s a philosophical point.
Everyone likes Stroman better. Stroman might be a headcase, but he delivers top-tier results every year.
JB
There is no question that Stroman was better last year
That doesn’t matter for this year
I think it’s more likely that Stroman is better this year.
But it’s not guaranteed.
There are plenty of outcomes where Severino is better.
Some teams might prefer Severino’s upside to Steoman’s
Cashman is good.
Why?
2nd LAD trade and already a SDP trade….NYY only wants to trade with the NL West?
I guess you missed the Estevan Florial for Cody Morris with Cleveland, McKinney to Pirates and the Verdugo trade with Boston
SDP?
San Diego Padres.. which of course in German means a dad whale’s vagina
Thanks for that -lol
Good lefty
Servicable. Certainly worthy of a roster spot. This has to be a precursor to another LA move. You just don’t give up on a decent lefty unless something is “Brewin.”
Both the Yankees and Dodgers have full 40 man rosters. I don’t know if this will clear a spot for the Dodgers.
depends who the 2 prospects are… might be a low level Dominican Summer League player and a AAAA player like Rortvedt who the Dodgers just DFA
He’s more than serviceable. He’s really good.
looks like ryan brasier
They signed Brasier for 2 yrs
The Dodgers signed Ryan Brasier and had to clear a roster spot. Ferguson was the guy. This way they get a coupe of prospects and clear room on the 40 man.
Let me guess, Dodgers signed Snell and needed a 40-man spot cleared.
I was thinking the same (not necessarily Snell but possibly another imminent move).
Dodgers not signing Snell, he walks way to many hitters for the liking of the Dodgers.
Snell was joke, of course they’re not signing him. But they probably have a signing incoming.
There’s a serious inability to take a joke at this place.
Solid move by Cashman here
100%
This is a real reliever, better than what was available on the market. Curious what they gave up.
Yankees definitely needed a solid lefty in the bullpen after losing Peralta.
Sherman in a follow-up tweet indicated he’s hearing it’s a faraway Dominican player (guessing a DSL player) and the second being a quad-A type. The faraway Dominican player then is likely the get for the Dodgers.
Sherman hinted that it may be two low-level lottery ticket arms.
The Dodgers have deferred the return from the Yankees
Im gonna defer my blunt smoking until 9pm tonight 🙂
I can’t wait that long
I miss smoking white owl blunts in Long Island with my people.
It’s 7 pm. Two hours to go…or start early like Joe.
Rob I started an hour early. This strain of gorilla glue is just too good 🙂 🙂 🙂
I’m about to get higher than Craig Counsell’s bat during a plate appearance
Nice pick up. See, only players that are traded for play for the Yankees. Nobody wants to commit
What?
Never dive too deep into troll comments. It’s a dark hole filled with disappointment.
Didn’t see that coming
Leaves LA with only Vesia and Yarborough as lefties out if the pen
What move are they making?
Ryan Brasier probably
DD
Maybe
But, Ferguson is probably better than Brasier. And 8s a lefty.
So, that would probably make the team worse in 2024.
The Dodgers do pretty well with finding arms and dumping them at the right time. I’ll personally take a wait and see here.
I just saw that’s exactly what they did. Brasier is OK, but at the cost of Ferguson? I think it’s a mistake unless they get something special back from NYY, and so far Gage was a waiver claim.
Yes. Seems Brasier was it.
He’s a lefty. He’s big ad he throws hard. Give him to M., Blake for a few weeks and see if he can’t turn him into another Zach Britton.
Ferguson has reverse career splits, he’s fared better against righties than lefties.
Career ops vs lefties .720 vs Britton at .584 career tops of 106 vs Briton’s 84.
“turn him into”…don’t think Zack Britton’s sinker is teachable.
It was just a generic example. Perhaps turn him into Lucas Luetge…with a better heater.
Vive — I mean, nothing generic about Zach, but point taken.
(It should also be noted that the Yankees didn’t have to do anything to Zach. Britton was already Britton when he wore the pen stripes. In case that was being infered…which I’m sure it wasn’t from Wampum)
He’s actually very good as is because he’s a lefty who can get righties out.
The Yankees are very good at building pens because they’re not just adding arms, they add specific type of arms. In this instance, the addition of Ferguson means three of the top six relievers over the last two years at limiting :”barrels” are in the Yankees pen. Holmes, Loaisiga and now Ferguson. At Yankee Stadium, that’s quite valuable.
Pretty damn good pitcher. Dodgers better be receiving a decent return because lefty’s with his stuff are valuable. Dodgers are dealing with a numbers crunch but I hate losing him. Very sneaky pick up by Yankees.
Dodgers dumping their excess 40-man in NY again lol.
Ferguson is s lot more than “excess 40-man”
Not to the Dodger$$$ he aint.
Matt Moore signed with the Angels for 1/$9MM and I’d rather have Ferguson than him.
Guys a riot.
What prospects??? Going to LA
Spencer Jones and Chase Hampton LOL
I’ll reserve a thumbs up or down depending on what we gave up. But looks like a solid young lefty RP who could also start. .
Trust me, you do NOT want Ferguson to start. He’s nasty out the the pen but looks lost every time the Dodgers used him as an opener.
Dodgers stock piling prospects for a big trade?
Interested to see what the Dodgers are getting in return. Looks like this guys got some real solid numbers, plus he’s a lefty. That’s a guy in demand:)
Maybe they’re sending some Ohtani deferred payments?
Brasier signing coming soon
A little surprised LA traded him
Dodgers were kind of over this guy he would pitch well at certain moments, but then would struggle mightily. He has a good makeup, but was kind of a confusing mess too often.
Solid pitcher out of the pen. Sometimes struggles with command, walks and falling behind counts. When he does that those outings often become a hot mess. Surprised that he gave up more hits than innings pitched for the first time in his MLB career last year.
Was hoping that they would keep Ferguson and find someone better than Ferguson to replace Vesia. As others have mentioned though Ferguson has reverse splits so not really the prototype LH reliever.
Looks like Dodgers rolling with Vesia and Yarbrough from the left side in pen. Not the best LH options but they could always upgrade at the deadline if necessary.
Who?
I’m not against this move one bit
LA like most teams up against the 40 man roster. Why doesn’t MLB expand to 45?
Because the owners would have to pay more money in payroll.
Dodgers should’ve just waited 3 days until thursday to sign Brasier. Then they could’ve moved Frasso, May and Gonsolin the 60 day IL and cleared up 3 spots. Dumb trade in my opinion.
They obviously know this so don’t think that this was a trade that was forced on them due to Brasier signing. They must think that Ferguson was expendable. There are many options from RH side. Perhaps this is a good sign that Treinen, Hudson and others are healthier than expected.
Dodgers got fleeced
Dodgers got fleeced
======================
Do you know the 2nd player they are getting, or does that not matter?
The Dodgers FO must be hoping that Vesia has a bounce back year, because that is a quality bullpen piece to be giving up. Yankees fans should be happy with this move.
And what is Friedman’s plan if vesia stinks again? I would much rather have Ferguson than Vesia.
LHRP is looking like a huge weakness for the Dodgers now. Combine that with only one lefty in the rotation. Yikes.
JCL
Yikes
They might go from 95 wins to 94
Handedness in starting rotation is overrated. Ideally you’d like to have a couple of LH options out of pen for later in game maneuvers but there is always time to upgrade Vesia/Yarbrough before the deadline.
Dodgers rebuilding the Yankees bullpen with LH RP – Gonzalez and now Ferguson. Ferguson is legit – albeit going into his final year of control.
As others have pointed out, that leaves the Dodgers with only Vesia and Yarbrough as lefties in the bullpen.
This is not a 40-man issue, as on the 8th, the Dodgers could have freed up two or three spots for additions. But, this must be a precursor to something else or the Dodgers just love who they are getting back – having said that, they must be lower level prospects who by their nature are high-risk, long-shots anyway.
As a Dodgers fan, here’s hoping we got their future Jordan Alvarez or O’Neil Cruz!! Two guys we basically dumped for relief help when they were super low level prospects!!
Right now, it looks like the only lefty RP on the 40 man are Kopp and Rooney. Hard to imagine either making the bullpen right out of spring.
OK. So dropping Ferguson’s salary offsets most of adding Brasier’s salary (whom the Dodgers just re-signed after apparently caving and going two years). Also, I forgot, Ferguson has no options left. Though he is a good pitcher for the Yanks to get. And Dodgers add Gage as another lefty option out of the pen who does have options. This had to have been about salary and roster flexibility for the Dodgers. But maybe the other prospect coming to the Dodgers will help fill out the picture more.
That’s the way I see it. You can’t judge the trade without seeing the minor leaguer they are getting, but part of the value for the LAD is the option on Gage.
Could be a few things:
Caleb had complained in the media last year about being stashed on the Il while healthy.
Dodgers pen was basically locked in, no one had options left.
The team might like someone else better.
Caleb is a free agent after this year, move him for value or lose him for nothing.
Restock the low minors w prospects that don’t need to go on the 40 man.
Linkage to Ferguson complaining to the media required.
latimes.com/sports/story/2022-06-23/caleb-ferguson…
Not sure if this is what Dodger Dog was referring to, but he has voiced some displeasure in the past with the organization.
Seems to me he was voicing a lot of frustration with his recovery from injuries, mainly. He flapped off more than was probably good for him but it isn’t like we don’t hear players say similar things.
truth
ok, don’t have an opinion. just thought i’d do you a favor by doing the 30-second Google search for you.
Seems to me he wanted to pitch more often with the Dodgers wanting to take a more conservative approach after his TJS. He appeared in 68 games last season so it should be water under the bridge and the Dodgers were probably correct in their process. If he has a similar performance with the Yankees this season, he should be looking at a 3+ yrs. at $9MM-$10MM AAV as a FA.
Favor not needed thanks, because I knew about this already. The point is fans should not assume they understand the relationship between a player and his team based on their interpretation of a few words in an article.
All good points DD.
I was not surprised to see this trade today.
The minor leaguers are key to this deal. I also suspect Doc wanted Ferguson gone and/or Ferguson asked for a trade. The points you make are reasons for that.
Ferguson’s meltdowns in a few high leverage situations were ugly. It was clear that Doc was disappointed in how the kid handled those situations. Moreover, there was one instance (San Diego in August), where Ferguson appeared to display his frustration with his teammates over errors made behind him. Doc and his teammates were put off by that episode.
and vesia and yarbs. But still not much there.
Ops vs lefties .720 ops vs righties .684 in his career.
baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=fergu…
WW
Seen this mentioned twice
It’s not really the thing to look at. The samples are too small
K% and BB% are always best in small samples
Vs L: BB 8.4% K 26.4%, K-BB 18.0%
Vs R: BB 9.5% K 28.3%, K-BB 18.9%
Pretty similar
Safest to say there’s not much of a platoon see split
Maybe another look as a starter is in order
Agreed filihook. Very similar vs righties and lefties, but not the Britton like splits that are thought of with lefties. Ferguson is not better at getting out lefties than righties.
Gage has an extremely small sample size, but lefties are just 2/19 off of him.
Maybe the Dodgers see something, and think it’s worth it based on Ferguson not being any better vs lefties than righties.
Ferguson was also a malcontent. That counts for a lot in LA.
And the documentation of Ferguson being a malcontent, is?
I consulted a seer.
I see your seer and raise you a psychic.
I fold
Similar but for LH relievers unless they’re just lights out against any hand hitter, you’d prefer them to be able to dominate LH hitters better than Caleb has, so you can insert them against opponents with at least two lefty hitters out of next three hitters coming up.
Yankees are way behind Baltimore. Tampa and Toronto will still finish ahead also
Thanks for letting us know.
And here I was thinking they had a chance…
I think adding a couple Lefty relivers is in part dealing w/ Orioles/Red Sox/Tampa Bay lines ups loaded w/ difficult lefty hitters.
Yankees and Red Sox are much better than their fans seem to think. Toronto has to see Vlad Jr be Vlad Jr to not be last place in AL East, imo.
Matt Gage appears to be coming to LA.
Good on the Yankees to acquire another guy who will have to shave that beard off. I’d only support a Rollie Fingers style.
I agree with whoever said earlier that the Dodgers are getting a little thin on LH pitching, and not just in the pen. I don’t know if this was a factor, but Ferguson has been publicly unhappy with how the Dodgers have managed his career, mostly about keeping him in the minors or on the DL for roster management purposes. He’s demonstrated that by performance standards he has been underappreciated and should have been playing a lot more, and maybe he or the team have already burned bridges.
Linkage required documenting Ferguson’s public unhappiness.
latimes.com/sports/story/2022-06-23/caleb-ferguson…
Already know about this and responded to it elsewhere.
People complain about Roberts as if in-game decisions are the only thing a manager does. A modern manager’s main modern problem is to keep players receptive and engaged with whatever weirdo game plan is being implemented by the front office. It’s really easy for an analytics whiz without superb people skills to lose the team *cough*Kapler*cough*, as old-schoolers object to modern tactics and young players think they should have a say in how they are used. Roberts does this better than anyone, with Ferguson being a notable exception of course.
And people complain about managers as if they aren’t hired to implement the front office’s game planning.
A couple of prospects who may be headed to the Dodgers according to a few Yankees bloggers:
Jerson Alejandro and Christian Zazueta
And the Dodgers resigned Brasier 2 years/$9 million
It said one is Gage, whom the Yankees just picked up a couple weeks ago.
Hey Yanks fans, one more thing. Ferguson is good and hope he pitches well for you guys. But wait until you see his face when he pitches – he always looks like he’s about to have a heart attack.
Good move by the Yanks. No question they’ve improved on-paper and can win the AL East. Health is always a question mark with NYY.
Pretty much true with every team. Not many clubs can sustain long term injuries to the heart of their line-up.
They seem to be injured the most. That should have been an obvious.
Dodgers creating a void in their lhp bullpen instead of just dfa Barnes off the 40 man roster
Yeah, one catcher on the roster. That’ll work.
Everything has been upgraded but the backup catcher position he’s a waste get over him
Do what?
Yes, the fortunes of a ball club truly rise and fall based on their backup catcher lol. The dodgers have more than enough offense to carry a weak hitting back up catcher especially when their starting catcher is top 3-4 in the game.
Bat handling is just about the least important part of a catcher’s job. But here’s a fun fact. Barnes had a completely brutal first half of the season with the bat, sure. But who had a better second half, Barnes or Smith?
Agreed and that’s an interesting bit of trivia. I just think it’s hilarious to see a dodgers fan belly-aching about Austin Barnes of all things lmao.
You use 2 accounts in the reply and then conversate between them lol that some looser stuff
Lol nope. I only have one account. Posting bad takes and then coming up with ridiculous conspiracy theories to deflect criticism, now that’s what I’d call loser stuff lmao.
So am I your evil twin, or are you mine?
Why make it easier on em blueskies? We can take turns lol.
Don’t think that this is a clear 40 man roster case. They could have easily announced Brasier signing a few days later so the Dodgers could clear 40 man space with 60 day ILs. It seems like Dodgers think Ferguson is expendable. Barnes is not going anywhere. Unless Feduccia rakes like there is no tomorrow at AAA, and Barnes struggles again and Smith gets hurt for decent amount of time I don’t think that they do much with the backup catcher spot. There is really no rush to upgrade backup catcher spot when Smith will get most of the starts. Sure, it would be nice to get a better backup catcher but that’s not a priority, and could be done in 2025 season.
BB
Barnes is almost certainly better than Feduccia
DFA’ing Barnes would open up a hole in the C depth since Cartaya is not ready
People forget that Barnes raked in the minors, career OPS of 0.853 and 0.916 in AAA and AA, respectively. Hitting in MLB is completely different especially when you get such few at bats per season.
Rushing is ready.
Rushing is ready for what? AA? He hasn’t played above A+ in the minors.
Rushing is not close to being ready. At the earliest he’s available some time in the 2025 season, but most likely in 2026, or even 2027.
Word is the second player is Christian Zazueta.
Yankees are building a strong bullpen. Still not crazy about Holmes closing games out but this bullpen looks pretty strong. I thought losing Brito and Vazquez hurt but we are getting back Gil who is a big arm as well plus a few guys returning from long term injuries. I like this team versatility but still feel adding one pitcher like a Trevor Bauer moves Nestor to long relief and that is a really strong rotation. Add Brandon Woodruff who is out all season in a two year deal and the rotation is set for a few years. Now if they completely tank like last season they have players who will be free agents that they can move at the deadline like Torres and Losiaga. Soto if they don’t think will resign. They can still use Torres to acquire an arm f they think Peraza or DJ can handle second all year. Lots of options other than moving Stanton huge contract. If Stanton has a bounce back year (30hr 90 rbi .260 average) maybe than we can get rid of the albatross?
The only clear closer FA options were Hader and Chapman (who burned his bridge) who are probably upgrades over Holmes. Signing Hader would’ve shut out Stroman’s signing. Bauer is currently lost in space and it would never happen being it’s NYC and with Cole on the team. For Stanton, I’ll be ecstatic with .235/27/80 and an OBP above .320.
Yeah I mean I know folks have their issues with cash and Hal but there’s no way they’d be dumb enough to sign bauer. I wouldn’t mind another sp signing and woodruff is kind of intriguing as a big picture move, but the yanks do have Gil, Beeter, Warren and maybe even Hampton as guys who could get some looks this year.
Still kinda shocked that the Yankees haven’t offloaded a catcher in one of these minor roster moves. They still have 5 on their 40 man roster, which is at least one too many.
they’ll probably DFA Rortvedt (who is out of options) at or near the end of spring training… just waiting to make sure Trevino is fully recovered from his surgery and Wells keeps raking
No need to DFA him until they need a roster spot though. There are teams still looking for catching depth. I thought Rortvedt or Narvaez might get moved to Pittsburgh, Astros (before they got Caratini) or Milwaukee.
Navarez still has options remaining so he can be sent to the minors without a DFA but they’ll need to DFA Rortvedt if Trevino & Wells are both healthy and making the team – I don’t see them carrying catchers and Rortvedt is out of options
the only instance Rortvedt, Trevino AND Wells all make the team out of spring training is if they ALL rake and there are injuries to Stanton and Rizzo or Soto which would allow Wells to slide over to 1B or DH… I think there is a bigger chance of Yogi Berra coming back to life and making the team
Agreed. I forgot that Rortvedt was out of options. For someone who has barely ever played, it seems crazy but it’s true. Of the two, he’ll either get DFA’d or traded before the end of spring training before they waive Narváez.
yeah – I don’t get how Deivi Garcia got an extra option year last year and Oswald Peraza did this year but Estevan Florial last year and Rortvedt this year didn’t and Trent Grishman (who came up a year before Florial) somehow still has all 3 remaining – it seems pretty arbitrary (pun intended) how MLB hands out these extra option years
Agreed. Should be based on time actually spent in the majors or time spent on the IL. Too much time in the big show, no 4th year. Lots of time on the IL, 4th year granted.
Matt gage is 30 i wouldn’t call him a prospect lol
I like this move. They grabbed Gage and flipped him and a low prospect for Ferguson? That’s a nice upgrade.
If he repeats those several years of 1.1 WHIP I will be pleased
If a pitcher has a WHIP of about 1.1 consistently over the years then I like him
Unless they find a complement to Cole (somewhere somehow) all this won’t matter in the playoffs. Pitching wins the short series . They need Snell or Montgomery as the Soto deal is a rental it appears.
IF Soto deal is indeed a “rental”, they’re better off NOT getting Snell or Montgomery and using that money towards re-signing Soto… we can always compliment the playoff rotation at the trade deadline if we are in the race – and trade Soto & Gleyber if we are not
The team has a bunch of expiring contracts which can be moved – Soto, Gleyber, Verdugo, Rizzo, Holmes, Loaisiga, and Kahnle. Hopefully, it won’t come to that. Stanton can be dumped if they eat most of his contract. That’s eight roster spots but it will be filled in poorly if the panic button gets hit.
Dodgers goi g with that Oops all Righty’s pitching staff
This proves the Dodgers are basically cheating and this whole Brasier signing was pre-planned since it happened right after the Ferguson move, as always a player used other teams to drive up the Dodgers’ price knowing they can top any offer. MLB is corrupt and people are sick of it.
Not a Dodgers fan, but how exactly is clearing a 40 man spot before signing Brasier cheating? Sounds more like playing inside the boundaries of the rules to me.
Lol what? First of all it’s commonplace for teams to make move to clear a 40 man spot before finalizing a deal with a free agent. Second, free agents leveraging interest from multiple teams to drive up the price is literally how free agency works. This is not unique to the dodgers or brasier. Where’s the “cheating” meant to come into play exactly?
Leveraging interest from multiple teams? Teams are ONLY doing this for the Dodgers. Hardly any other teams are signing players. The few big signings that happened (or that will happen) are basically Boras guys sticking to their guns in negotiations. The Dodgers aren’t “working” the system they’re flat out abusing it. MLB is ultimately to blame of course, but the Dodgers are easily the most hatable team in all of sports. And the city of LA is garbage which adds fuel to the fire.
Ok so yadda yadda yadda, blah blah blah, you don’t like the dodgers or the city of LA so they MUST be doing something nefarious. Let’s not let little things like the RSN revenue issue, the fact that many teams don’t have the money to compete with LA on free agents to begin with, or the other free agents with deals who aren’t LA signees this off-season get in the way of your deranged manifesto lol.
Actually you nailed it. They have an unfair advantage. The other stuff is just the icing on the hatred.
I’m not saying the financial disparities within the league aren’t an issue but nothing you’ve mentioned supports the idea that the dodgers are cheating.
Sounds like small market syndrome. Tell your cheap owners to invest in your team and maybe you’ll be as big as the Dodgers someday
lol, take your meds and calm down
Is his uncle Turd?
Nice one
the more i hear about this turd ferguson the less i care for him
Solid signing doesn’t hurt. Will slot nicely replacing Wandy. I hope they still give Warren a look. Definitely need some 6-8 starters. Hampton probably too far away, Beeter should get some innings, but it’d be nice in a single year of Soto to have the backup. Still you have two if the top 4-5 hitters in the league at the top of the order… The AL Cy young Ace… and a decent supporting cast. If Baltimore sophomore slumps we should do well but that’s a big if.
he’s been solid. confusing to this Dodger fan but something else must be on the horizon. Yankees are going to like the kid.
I like this move gives the yankees 2 lefties. And ramirez or krook as a 3rd lefty option. If loogy & kahnle stay healthy they should have a great bullpen. I think everyone wants another starter but they are ok with , cole, stroman, Nestor rodon, schmidt they should be good yes injuries but with weaver gil Poteet and beeter that should give enough depth with 2 of 4 and utilizing a opener if need be. And who knows maybe the yankees sign another starter… spring training is around the corner maybe they sign a 1 year 5 mill deal that is really about 8 mill due to the tax bracket… some of these guys are going to start to sign as the market will dry up
Guys like tommy milone a vet as insurance, clevinger, rich hill, junis, kaprellian, odorizzi, woodruff I can’t see any of them signing for more than 10 mill (clevinger ordrizzi maybe but at this point probably not) again 1 year 5th starter insurance only not saying they are great but can take the ball every 5 to 6 days with a good offense and pitch 5 innings…
That’s where Bauer and Woodruff come in. You don’t have to pay them a ton of money to get them both here and you are getting a bonafide second starter and a former ace! It’s a no brainer and the only fans against it are those who hate Bauer for all the stupid Twitter banter but as far as the accusation he was found not guilty to the point that now the supposed victim now has legal concerns.
Brandon Woodruff isn’t going to pitch for you so it doesn’t really help out your depth there. He’s a move for ‘25 and beyond.
Bauer and Cole dislike each other and the Yankees play in a market where the pr hit for signing bauer would likely be more significant than average. Also you really think the Yankees FO wants to roll the dice on bauer dealing with NY media lol? Correction: the fans who are against it are the ones who understand what bauer’s legal situation and history actually represent and the ones who understand the specific clubhouse and market issues that make bauer a bad fit.
His situation isn’t legal, it’s with MLB. This is why he isn’t a good fit anywhere.
100% agreed. It just kind of does my head in that so many folks both think that bauer has been full-on legally exonerated and the fact that he isn’t wearing an orange jump suit means diddly-squat to his mlb opportunities rn. The rest is just team specific gravy.
Actually it’s the other way around. If he’s found not guilty than why is mlb deciding they are going to have there own legal system? And yes he’s full on legally exonerated and that is a fact. As far as any lingering issue with mlb well shame on the union for not getting involved if that’s the case but it is not. Any team can sign him but they are all scared about what will be printed in the press.
Actually, it’s the other way around. They call it the joint policy because it’s a joint policy, between the owners and players. It is also not a “legal system” it’s a condition of employment, just like everything else in the CBA. No team will sign him because unlike every other player who was found to have violated the policy (which the players and owners created jointly, remember), he has never taken any personal responsibility for it. See? No tinfoil hat required.
It just kind of does my head in that so many folks both think that bauer has been full-on legally exonerated
=========================
After seeing what the accuser said about setting him up, I find it hard to believe that even a single person believes her.
Lots of people still can’t resist going all Perry Mason on this, even lacking any real knowledge of the facts or any apparent interest in the joint policy that actually governs the outcome. All we really know is that two lengthy hearings including one before a neutral arbitrator both came to the same conclusion. Case closed, Mr. Mason. You do not get to cross-examine the witnesses.
bb
“If he’s found not guilty”
He has not been found not guilty
“And yes he’s full on legally exonerated and that is a fact. ”
This is 100% incorrect. Please provide the evidence that has lead you to believe this erroneously.
“If he’s found not guilty than why is mlb deciding they are going to have there own legal system?”
You don’t have to be found guilty of a crime to get in trouble at work
JB
“After seeing what the accuser said about setting him up, I find it hard to believe that even a single person believes her.”
Two things can be true
1) She could have been trying ro land a rich husband/date a rich guy
2) Bauer could have assaulted her.
Those aren’t remotely exclusive events
Labor agreements occupy an interesting position in that they are both a document that establishes some workplace policies and a literal, legal contract. A CBA isn’t going to cover every single personnel policy at an organization and in the case of mlb you have added layers in the form of individual team policies as well as any “morals” or other personal expectation clauses that may be present in an individual player’s contract. That digression aside, bauer was legally excluded from participation in mlb during his suspension in that the process established in that contract led to a finding that his conduct violated behavioral expectations. While it’s not a criminal verdict it was a similar process in that there was an investigation which produced evidence reviewed according to the standard of proof used in these hearings and rulings. Imo you could reasonably say that bauer was found to have committed sexual misconduct under a preponderance of evidence standard.
In this case, the joint policy on domestic violence is incorporated into the CBA such that every player is subject to it. The language of non-permitted conduct is fairly clear. Players can either choose to understand and follow it, or not.
One of the common mistakes made in describing the policy is saying that it allows for suspensions “even if,” the player is not convicted of a crime. It should be “only if,” since a criminally convicted player is automatically placed on the inactive or ineligible list. Further, MLB cannot even conduct an investigation under the policy while a criminal investigation is ongoing, which is why they can take so long to complete. Bottom line, suspensions under the policy and prosecution under the law are effectively mutually exclusive propositions. No charges being filed does not by any means translate into a finding the player didn’t violate the policy.
We will never know what happens in these hearings as they are a completely private administrative process. All we can know is the results. The other thing we can know is players who are suspended under the policy have a road back to the game, if they choose to take it and it starts with acknowledging errors in judgement.
I like Ferguson. I watched Ferguson pitched last year and he got some big outs in relieve. Good pickup for the Yankees.
I’d be a hard no on Bauer unless cole said go get him. But again cole is a clarke schmidt fan and with stroman rodon and Nestor that’s a solid 5 if (IF) they stay healthy if Rodon gets hurt in spring training I can see a clevinger/ rich hill type coming in if unsigned still as insurance
As a Dodgers fan, Caleb was good, but you couldn’t COUNT on him to be good. A lot of key let downs.
Yankees get proven reliever. LA gets lots of team control. Works out for both teams goals.
Hey hey … Loogy??! It’s Johnny Lasagna pal! lol sorry I can’t get over Loogey lol Myst be a spitballer. Haven’t heard him called that before lol As for the rest I agree. Thinking maybe a deadline starter if things get tense
“Meanwhile” cannot come in the middle of sentence, set off by commas—it has to START the sentence.